Sun Microsystems Integrated Circuits

Founded in 1982, Sun Microsystems is a computer, semiconductor, and software manufacturer headquartered in Silicon Valley. Sun was an early advocate of Unix-based networked computing, TCP/IP (transmission/internet protocol), and especially NFS (network file system), as reflected in the company's motto "The Network Is The Computer." In the early 1990s, Sun developed the Java platform with the objective of allowing programs to function independently of a device's hardware or operating system. Sun Microsystems grew explosively during the dot-com bubble of the 1990s and was severely hurt when the bubble burst, but has regained profitability. Sun has become a leader in the global open-source software movement by donating more than 1,600 patents.

Complete Die Photomicrographs

UltraSPARC

High Magnification Images

UltraSPARC (67K) - Partial die shot of the Sun Microsystems UltraSPARC microprocessor showing the center of the chip with bus connections and Sun logo using oblique illumination with red and yellow gels.

UltraSPARC (45K) - Partial die shot of the Sun Microsystems UltraSPARC microprocessor showing the edge of the chip with the Sun logo in the center of the picture using oblique illumination with red, yellow, and blue gels.

UltraSPARC (59K) - Partial die shot of the Sun Microsystems UltraSPARC microprocessor showing the bus connections in the center of the chip using oblique illumination with red and yellow gels.